Moscow and Moscow Region, St. Petersburg and Leningrad Region, Krasnodar Territory, as well as Sverdlovsk, Chelyabinsk, and Nizhny Novgorod Regions joined the program at the fastest rates. Over 30% of all participants in the experiment are from those regions.
The ranking generally reflects the distribution of regions by the number of self-employed individuals there: the more there are, the more participants join the program in that region. However, the further down we move from the top positions, the less that rule applies. Chelyabinsk Region, for instance, which closes out the top 7 regions for voluntary insurance, is outside the top ten in terms of the number of registered self-employed individuals. That, however, merely demonstrates that the region in question is no less actively involved in the experiment compared to the ranking leaders.
The insurance program against temporary disability for self-employed individuals launched in Russia this year. It grants professional income tax payers the right to a paid sick leave, which is guaranteed to those employed under labour and civil law contracts.
To take part in the experiment, a self-employed individual needs to register with the Social Fund and make monthly contributions. An application to join the program can be submitted through the Gosuslugi Portal, the My Tax app, as well as at the Social Fund's client offices.
In order to participate, a self-employed individual has to choose an insured amount that their sick leave payments will be based on RUB 35,000 or 50,000. The higher amount will bring higher payouts in case of an illness.
To qualify for sick leave payments, contributions shall be paid either monthly or as a lump sum for the entire year. The contribution rate is 3.84% of the chosen annual benefit amount. Consequently, a required monthly contribution would be RUB 1,344 or RUB 1,920 (3.84% of RUB 35,000 or RUB 50,000, respectively). If paid annually, the contribution stands at RUB 16,128 or RUB 23,040 (the total of monthly contributions for 12 months).
A self-employed individual will be able to receive sick leave benefits six months after making an annual contribution or following continuous payment of monthly contributions. The sick leave benefit amount will depend on their work duration and the contribution payment period.
Please note that the ongoing experiment applies only to sick leave benefits for self-employed individuals and does not affect maternity allowances for pregnancy and childbirth or child care entitlements for children under 18 months.